Church History Matters

The 40-year struggle to build the Salt Lake Temple unfolds amid pioneer hardship, national backlash, and escalating federal pressure. Explore the launch of the Logan and Manti temples, secret leadership, dramatic legal battles, contested traditions, and the perilous choice between temple work and plural marriage. The story traces how temples became symbols of continuity during a turbulent turning point.

Jennifer Mackley, executive director of the Wilford Woodruff Papers Foundation and a Latter-day Saint history author, traces the evolution of temple doctrine during Wilford Woodruff’s lifetime. Explore the St. George and Logan temples, genealogy’s growing importance, proxy work for the dead, changing endowment practices, and the 1894 shift from adoption to generational sealings. A fascinating look at how temple traditions took shape.

Why was St. George chosen as Utah’s first completed temple? Explore the pioneer ingenuity, desert construction, and urgent spiritual work that made it possible. The discussion traces the shift from temporary sacred spaces to standardized endowments, proxy ordinances, written ceremonies, and repeated temple worship, revealing how St. George set patterns for Logan, Manti, and the Salt Lake Temple.

The Saints’ westward journey carried an urgent mission: build temples for sacred ordinances, family sealings, and proxy work. Explore Brigham Young’s vision for the Salt Lake Temple, the improvised spaces used before its completion, and the formidable challenges of granite, railroads, political conflict, and a flawed foundation. Discover why the St. George Temple became an essential bridge while Salt Lake’s monumental project continued.

Trace the evolution of Latter-day Saint temple worship from biblical and Restoration foundations through Kirtland and Nauvoo. Explore the emergence of baptisms for the dead, endowments, sealings, and other ordinances, along with the challenges surrounding plural marriage. Follow Wilford Woodruff’s work in St. George as temple practices became standardized and paved the way for the Salt Lake Temple.

Patrick A. Bishop, a Latter-day Saint history researcher, and Joseph F. Brickey, a classical and forensic artist, investigate a disputed daguerreotype claimed to depict Joseph Smith. They trace its discovery, compare it with portraits, death-mask evidence, skull studies, and firsthand descriptions, and explain their 3D reconstruction methods. Could this be the Prophet’s face, or an unidentified lookalike?

Porter Rockwell’s legendary image meets the historical record. Explore disputed killings, the Boggs and Worrell cases, the murky Aiken affair, and the evidence behind tales of his invulnerability. Alongside the violence and folklore emerges a more complicated figure: a loyal friend, devoted churchman, kind host, sharp wit, law officer, and deeply imperfect man.

Porter Rockwell’s legend is put to the test, from the disputed Boggs assassination claims to the documented shooting of Franklin Worrell. Explore his early church life, his dramatic rescue of Joseph Smith, the road to Carthage, and the grief that followed the martyrdom. Along the way, sensational sources and frontier folklore meet the surviving historical record.

Was Porter Rockwell the mysterious shooter who nearly killed Missouri Governor Lilburn W. Boggs? This lively investigation traces Missouri’s violence, Rockwell’s fearsome reputation, John C. Bennett’s accusations, alleged confessions, competing suspects, and the evidence that kept the case unresolved. It also explores Rockwell’s grueling imprisonment and triumphant return to Nauvoo.

Jack Welch, a Latter-day Saint scholar and founder of Scripture Central, explores Moroni’s role in the Restoration. They trace his appearances to Joseph Smith, his guardianship of the plates, and his loyalty to Mormon. The conversation connects September 21 with Jewish holy days, repentance, covenant renewal, and new beginnings, while celebrating Moroni Day and the Book of Mormon’s enduring legacy.